Crush (2021)

Main idea is great, but no closure for story conflicts. Plus, FL's character design is terrible.

I almost dropped this drama after watching ep13-14 and again at ep16.

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(1) Character Design
The FL is getting to be more absurd after her mom opposes her relationship with the ML. She contradicts herself when quarreling with the ML due to the writer doesn't know how to create proper progress to make a story reach its peak. Thus, he/she just throws an unrealistic, extreme scenario into the plot to force FL to act in a certain way for the story to go on the path that the writer wants even though originally it doesn't develop in that way.

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(2) Main Idea and Plot
The main idea about the ML is a songwriter who is also blind is a great idea. The production team has done a proper and beautiful job to raise the issue and awareness about blind people. But! the plot also raises questions about the writer's idea in story conflicts toward the end. There're quite a few conflicts being open in succession even though the drama has entered its last 1/5 portion of the whole story. They don't see they have time to manage these new conflicts during the last stretch at all. And in the end, they don't close these conflicts. They just left them without care. These are unnecessary conflicts, interesting but meaningless, obstacular and way too underdone. They don't need these things at all esp. if they don't want to give closure to what they open. I don't know why they make these points up if they just want to mention things without doing anything about them. These infuriating points are:
- point about Cheng Yin
- point about A Beautiful Mind
- point about unexpected PTSD
- point about stomachache (?? what the hell is this stomachache at the end I still don't know the cause of it, and what the heck it's there when it utterly looks like there's nothing about it.)

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(3) Acting
The second leads can't act.

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(4) Small Details
Apart from the above, there're some small points that show the director isn't meticulous, for example:
- the FL licks her lips in an important romantic, slow-motion scene (ep22). This absolutely should be a retake.
- there's a dialogue saying the mother can feel a 5-week-old baby in her womb kicking her. That baby has a size of bean sprout, also said the mother in the dialogue -_-
- a young girl who takes a supporting role doesn't grow up at all as time in the story passes, but the ML says the girl gets a lot higher -_- They should just cut that sentence out from the dialogue. Why emphasize your own loophole when you don't have to at all??

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I almost forgot I was watching a C-drama

If you’re looking for the typical romantic comedy where the FL is silly and dumb this isn’t for you. Prior to this I actually stopped watching another new drama because the FL was exactly like this. This is a story of 2 people who fall in love in spite of their deficits/shortcomings. I loved how the storyline focused mainly on them. There were no evil plots or side characters. Sure there was some cliches that you would normally find such as someone getting a cold and the separation period but it didn’t feel like they were overdoing it. The style reminded me more of a k-drama minus the ski ship. I found myself actually watching it instead of skipping through scenes. I got a little worried on episode 19. I thought it was a little creepy and that the storyline was gonna go downhill from there. Thankfully they somewhat recovered but it did leave me scratching my head. From then on even though I still enjoyed it I do wonder if someone else wrote the rest of the story. On the most part I thoroughly enjoyed this drama and it’s story and highly recommend it

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La primera mitad de este drama me encantó, y después no hizo mas que decaer

Decidí escribir esta reseña porque tengo que desahogarme en algún lado sobre este drama.

Primero hablaré de lo bueno, que es como ya dije antes la primera mitad.

Nos presentan a estos protagonistas completamente diferentes que se conocen y se enamoran, muy sencillo. Nian Qin es un chico que padece una deficiencia visual. No es ciego, pero eso cree la protagonista en un principio. Nian Qin no tiene amigos, es un chico demasiado solitario, seco y serio. Es por eso que llega Wuyan, su completo opuesto, a iluminarle la vida.

Todos esos capítulos en los que ellos se van conociendo y entendiendo el uno al otro me encantaron. Amaba cuando se redimían por sus acciones incorrectas (ambos) y al llegar al momento en el que por fin su amor floreció, uff chef kiss.
Al volverse una pareja, Nian Qin se abre con Wuyan y le muestra un lado de lo más romántico y lindo. Este par tiene una química hermosa y sus interacciones inocentes son de lo más adorable. Los momentos que más me gustaron y quisiera destacar son: cuando se separan en el metro y Wuyan se apresura a regresar a él, Nian Qin le dice "Eso fue rápido. No te preocupes, la próxima vez que nos separemos, me quedaré justo donde me dejaste". También, cuando Wuyan le dice a Nian Qin que tal vez no sea la chica más inteligente, o más bonita, pero sí será la que lo ame más en el mundo. Por último, cuando están en la rueda de la fortuna y Wuyan se entera que Nian Qin no es ciego, solo tiene deficiencia visual.

Ya con esta primera mitad de la historia yo estaba fascinada. La trama y los personajes secundarios tenían sus fallos, pero me encantaba tanto la pareja principal que ya estaba dispuesta a ponerle 9 al drama. Pero, tuvo que llegar la segunda mitad a decepcionarme.

Ahora hablaré de lo que no me gustó de este drama y las razones por las que bajó tanto mi puntaje final.

Decidí dividir el drama en dos al reseñarlo, porque esta separación es notable. Debido a la pésima comunicación y un sinfín de malentendidos entre los protagonistas, terminan separándose en malos términos. Tres años han pasado cuando se reencuentran y muchas cosas han cambiado. La más importante, Nian Qin recuperó la vista.

A ver, este era un momento que yo esperaba con ansias porque desde la sinopsis nos dicen lo que va a pasar. Tenía muchísimas expectativas sobre cómo sería su primer encuentro después de estar tanto tiempo separados, ya que Nian Qin vería a Wuyan con claridad por primera vez. Pero fue a partir de esto que el drama no dejó de decepcionarme.

Me explico, después de que Nian Qin recuperó la vista, ya no podía seguir viviendo como lo había hecho todos esos años, escribiendo canciones bajo un seudónimo y enseñando Braille a niños. Ahora, debía volverse CEO de la empresa de su padre ya que él se encontraba enfermo y Nian Qin era su único hijo. Entonces tenemos a este chico, que acaba de separarse de la única persona que ama y en la que confía, ahora ha recuperado la vista y se siente abrumado con todo lo que tiene que aprender y saber para poder dirigir el negocio familiar. Esto, sin duda, lo cambió. Pero no para bien.

Nian Qin es mi mayor problema en esta segunda mitad del drama. Durante muchos capítulos, traté de entender lo que pasó y que no podía ser la misma persona de antes, el mismo chico lindo, romántico, inocente y de cálido corazón del que Wuyan se había enamorado. Pero es que me lo cambiaron por completo! Orillaron a Nian Qin a convertirse en este esteriotipo de protagonista CEO posesivo, dominante y controlador. Sufrió alcoholismo tras la partida de Wuyan, y cuando por fin se reencuentran no hace más que mostrar red flags con su comportamiento. Todas las formas en las que se acercaba a Wuyan y la obligaba a hablar con él, a prestarle atención, eran cuestionables. Miren, Nian Qin ya era arrogante y orgulloso desde que se conocieron, pero en ese entonces todo terminaba en berrinches tiernos que Wuyan podía controlar, nada peligroso. Pero 3 años después, la persigue a todos lados, se porta super posesivo cuando la ve con otros hombres, e incluso la besa por la fuerza! También la llega a jalonear y apretar muy fuerte. ¿Dónde quedó el chico lindo del que Wuyan y yo nos enamoramos, eh?

Wuyan no se queda atrás. Creo que la principal razón por la que aún a pesar de todo esto, ella termina con él, es porque no ha cambiado en lo absoluto. Wuyan es casi igual que Nian Qin, solo que no externa tan explícitamente sus inseguridades y pensamientos cuestionables. Cuando veía todo lo que le hacía Nian Qin y me preguntaba por qué le seguía haciendo caso, solo podía pensar en que son tal para cual. Se merecen completamente!

Mi otro problema con la historia es la pareja secundaria. Yo AMO las parejas secundarias, las prefiero mil veces a un triángulo amoroso. Pero este par tenía CERO química. Su historia jamás me atrapó, ni siquiera al principio. Eran aburridos y sin gracia juntos. Traté de darles una oportunidad e interesarme por ellos, pero no pude y al final me resigné y adelantaba cada escena que tenían. Fue sin duda otra gran decepción.

Por último, quiero hablar de un tema que me causó demasiado conflicto. Además de la pareja secundaria, nos presentan a Cheng Yin, la compañera de cuarto y amiga de la universidad de Wuyan. Nos dicen que padece de claustrofobia, e incluso antes del salto de 3 años en el tiempo, ambas amigas sufren un accidente ya que tomaron el ascensor y quedaron atrapadas por mucho tiempo. Mi problema llega cuando, en los últimos capítulos, por allá del 21-22 creo, nos revelan que Cheng Yi murió en este accidente, y que todo este tiempo después Wuyan se la ha estado imaginando viva todavía. Este es un tema preocupante y delicado, considero que haberlo dejado para hasta el final fue irresponsable y una pésima decisión por parte de la producción. Pudo haber sido muy interesante si hubieran desarrollado esta subtrama en su debido tiempo, mostrando como Wuyan recibía ayuda psicológica adecuadamente y lo que este trauma que vivió significó para ella. Pero eso no fue lo que hicieron, lo trataron de forma muy descuidada, así como lo metieron a la trama repentinamente, así lo sacaron, como si no fuera la gran cosa.

Otros aspectos del drama que me molestaron pero no tanto como para dedicarles todo un párrafo son: la mamá de Wuyan, los malentendidos por los que pasaron los protas al separarse por primera vez, la desaparición del personaje de Xiao Wei en la segunda mitad del drama cuando antes jugaba un papel muy importante, y la forma tan apresurada en la que terminaron todo.

Ahora, 7 de 10 parece una calificación muy generosa si tengo tantas cosas que criticar y por las cuales quejarme del drama, pero como ya mencioné antes, la primera mitad me encantó tanto que es la única razón por la que no le pongo un 5 o 6 a este drama. Si se animan a verlo y deciden quedarse justo antes de que los problemas empiecen, no los culpo(:

Por fin pude desahogarme, esto fue largo pero me alegro haber podido sacar todo lo que pensaba de este drama.

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Don't miss to watch!

Been watching cdramas for 5 yrs. But now i am totally hooked & can’t get over in this drama. Everything were excellently executed. Now it’s very hard to watch a new drama because now i always have a comparison & set of standard. As a critic viewer i found CRUSH a superb drama with so many depth meanings & tackles reality of life. I liked the most about their weaknesses & disabilities but inspite of those Love conquers all. Kuddos to the whole team of crush production! Looking forward to new couple project of Evan Lin & Wan Peng!hoping for on & off camera love story!!!

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TRUE LUB WAITS !! "It must hve flown under ur radar, stream it"

A gorgeous idol wid personality issues learned 2 lighten up wen he met a bright & cheeky girl working as a station anchor. Its a melodrama wid a ML who is visually impaired & full of bitterness & resentment. Hence, de drama has a dark undertone 2 it although its not emphasized 2 de extent dat u will feel depressed watching it. His dark world has 2 b there as a contrast 2 de sunlight dat de FL gradually brought 2 his life.

VERDICT_ Crush had a good start but I would say de last episodes are mainly fillers which left the drama boring ...GOTTA SAY de acting is COMMENDABLE !!Crush escaped many people’s attention as it aired around de same time as U R MY GLORY. Wid de star power of de latter, its only natural it will attract more viewers. So, Crush is kind of flying under the radar to me.

P.S I never knew Evan Lin is actually a angelic singer wid no acting experience in his kitty. I was super surprised wen i learnt dis bcs i was surprised by his performance as a visually impaired man, which is a difficult role as he is not only almost blind, but also a negative person. EVAN managed 2 nail it wid his controlled eye movement & mannerisms 2 give viewers a very convincing performance as a visually impaired man. His expressions were on point 2 reflect a man wid darkness within him. & Wan Peng is also great as a cheerful & mischievous girl. Her role is not as challenging as Evan 's but dey shine 2gether as a couple. She has dis funny expressions wen she is making fun of Nian Qin & dey make a compatible couple on-screen.

#evanism

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Great at the first half... so so after that

It started off very well! With the ML having such a back story and the FL being a potential support for the ML growth, I expected a lot from this drama. The plot of how the FL chases the ML is pretty cute and I also like how the ML teases the FL after he got more comfortable with her. I was soo into the climax when they had a big misunderstanding which was no one's fault, just a series of misfortunate events...

Sadly, the plot started to go downhill at the later part of the drama. It became just a low EQ cliche drama whereby the ML is rich and possessive of the FL..... Nothing much to comment about the plot at the back.

Overall plot wise, I would 100% watch this for the beginning and middle of the plot and just bare with it at the back to complete the drama.

The music of this drama though!!! I love it! Recommend listening to the ending of Crush!!!

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Simply beautiful

It's hard to describe the feeling after watching this drama.. I feel like I need more! Lol.

The story was well scripted, and all the pieces including the second couple, were important for the overall development of the story. ? I admit I fast forwarded a few scenes of what I thought weren't essential, but ended up rewatching the scenes I missed ?

For his first drama, Evan Lin's acting was very realistic and the chemistry between him and Wan Peng was good. The soundtrack and songs were beautiful too.

If you're looking for a good romance drama, watch this.

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How gorgeous is Evan Lin? Those eyes that aren't supposed to be able to see anything are absolutely piercing. This drama is the first one I've given all tens to. The acting is phenomenal, the storyline is enthralling; my heart was aching and leaping for joy every single episode. And is that actually Evan Lin's voice? Because if so I need to hear more of it. The music is obviously outstanding in this drama. The struggle to overcome insecurities and fall in love in the first place, and then the struggle to hold on to that love, followed by the struggle to reclaim the love; it all hit close to home for me.

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strong start but ended with disappointment

absolutely fell in love with this drama within the first 5 seconds and it was just the intro. it was well written and was structured out so good (for ep 1-12) . though i still couldnt care less about the second leads. everything in this drama was perfect in the first few episodes ,definitely. the little things they put in the background for the scenes and all. Crush had its wits and funny moments but the drama lost its pace and consistence after ep12 .the male lead turned into literally just any other male leads in cdramas and lost his charm and became annoying and possessive BOO .

i was genuinely obsessed with this show because of ep1-12 . after that most of the scenes felt like fillers and it is super skippable. the chemistry between the main leads (WuYan & NianQin) were undeniable , i love their relationship seeing how gentle they are with each other (and clingy). but after they brokeup NianQin especially, felt like a whole different person :/ didn't really like him for a few episodes but it got bearable. tbh i was expecting something angsty for their relationship to have me crying my eyeballs out but they didnt manage to do that. it started off sooo good and could've end up being in my top 5 dramas but,, yea

in the end there were a few unresolved matters still though i think they had the time to resolve it but just couldnt bother to do so, so that's a minus point for the plot . overall it was worth the watch but its just a little rushed at the end

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A drama that went from charming to childish

Though my headline sounds critical, i should start off with the fact that i did truly enjoy the whole drama.

The setting and meeting between the leads was amazing. It played out like a unique love story where admiration quickly turns into love. The interactions felt realistic and the pace was perfect. Nian Qin's character was set up for development and he gradually became more lovable to watch. Wu Yan is a playful FL who strays away from the usual playful but clumsy and dumb female, which is something to be relieved about. The OSTS were fitting and the incorporation of music into the drama is flawless. Many things about this drama are so good. Im the type that needs to be hooked in the first episode, and this drama did that for me. However, it is very evident that the writing got lazy around the middle and lacked the same charm and elegance the first half did.

In the final third of the drama, there is cliche thrown upon cliche, and some distasteful ones at that. There were a few characters whose stories were abruptly cut off and unfinished as well as one that had an ending that made me ask if i was reading the subtitles correctly. Unfortunately, during this portion of the drama. Nian Qin has very noticeable changes, which make sense in some areas but seem so out of character and especially annoying in others. In the last few episodes in particular, there are moments where you feel like you have missed important events and relationship changing revelations. The second half essentially throws away all built in the first half.

Despite the lot that is negative, if you think the love you will have for the first half of the drama will be enough to pull you through the second half, then watch it, but if you hate inconsistency, proceed with caution.

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A rollercoaster ride drama, you don't want to get off!

This quiet little drama entered my life without a warning. I saw that it was trending one day and decided to take a chance on it just based on the synopsis and the poster. I was intrigued. No way could I have imagined a story that grabbed me and held me on for so long. There's so much going on with this drama that I loved. Mostly because it was a little different than most, it kept me so attached to this story. I myself can be categorized as a little visually impaired. To see this story unfold had a personal meaning to me. Evan played this role beautifully and thoughtfully. The music along in this drama can bring you to tears. It's almost it's own character here. The background music can set the mood and expectation of the scene which I loved. That aspect of the drama was something fresh to me. The acting and the chemistry between the leads was very natural. The characters seem to develop at a pace that very watchable- you wanted to be in love with them, you wanted to have them get back together... it was like you were in that relationship too. And the details that the director created were amazing. From the raindrops, to the leaves falling and the beautiful cinematography.

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Autumn kind of love

The feels. A little melancholy. A little warm. Depends on your mood. A falling leaf can be soothing, can be sad. And the drama seesaws between the two quite seamlessly.

If you watch ML moving in the darkness in his house. Thats cause the blind does not need the light at night. Then next scene its in the bright joyful setting of the FL and her roommate. The first quarter of the drama shows the two extremes of our CP. I dont know i find that very moving.

As she gets into his world and move him bit by bit, his house too becomes enveloped with light. I find the picture of him and his heart to be parallel and symbolic.

Moving on to the characterization. Male lead has a more extreme personality. He doesnt like, he doesnt do, he doesnt care and he wont spare a thought or a look. He is extrememly quiet and stays in his world due to the unpleasant childhood and his lack of sight. Like he put in words later, a person like him doesnt love easily. And to forget the person he love, is even more impossible. So this explains and may let you condone some of his extreme actions and reactions.

Female lead is again those courageous girl that puts on a wonderwoman suit and fights to enter the guy's realm after she fell in love at first sight and the same person whose songwriting she admires. She sometimes fumbles or gets into sticky embarrasing moments. But shes always honest and makes a lot of effort to understand him.

The biggest gem is the songs and ost. As I Believe is my favorite. Its the type at first verse, im totally suck in. Fall was another winner. And ML's song sang by Lin Yanjun himself. They blend into the drama, and make the scenes more impactful.

There is some change in tone as the drama progresses, which i know peeps complained about. I wouldnt say its perfect. But it did reflect how the leads are the same and yet different as time progresses. The jealous fiance husband could be toned down but i suppose grown man can be childish too. Some couples like a lot of couquetishness so as long as they are happy, thats all that matters.

Lastly the chemistry is what makes it really work. You just only need to see the comfortable body language and feel the ML and FL are so right for this pairing. They have the best hugs, forehead touches and eskimo kiss! Do watch.

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